Laterally and vertically shiftable auger loaders

ABSTRACT

A bowl type earth moving vehicle auger apparatus employing vertical augers above the earth inlet opening and scraper, the augers having free lower ends and having the upper ends specially mounted in a floating fashion to accommodate entry of large objects such as rocks. The auger lower end is laterally controllably shiftable in response to lateral stresses as a result of a special bearing assembly on the auger upper end shaft, and the auger is vertically shiftable in response to vertical stress as a result of the mounting arrangement of the auger framework to the bowl assembly. Also, the auger is vertically shiftable in cooperation with opening of the apron, as a result of the auger framework being specially cooperable with the apron elevating mechanism, to assure free discharge flow from the bowl without auger interference.

United States Patent [191 Fenske [451 May 28, 1974 1 LATERALLY ANDVERTICALLY SHIFTABLE AUGER LOADERS 22] Filed: Mar. 2, 1973 21 Appl. No.:337,279

[52] U.S. Cl 37/4, 214/8332, 198/213 [51] Int. Cl B60p l/36 [58] Fieldof Search..... 37/4, 8, 9, DIG. 18, DlG. 5,

37/DIG. 15, 124, 126; 198/213-217; 214/8332 [56] References Cited UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 973,921 10/1910 Dodge 37/DlG. 18 1,829,392 lO/l93lCaldwell 198/213 X 2,393,572 l/1946 Soma 198/213 3,431,659 3/1969 Eiger37/4 3,445,943 5/1969 Crum 214/8332 X 3,533,173 10/1970 Fenske 37/43,533,174 10/1970 Carston 37/4 X 3,735,904 5/1973 Vissers 198/2133,738,028 6/1973 Reinhardt 37/4 Primary Examiner-Robert E. PulfreyAssistant ExaminerEugene H. Eickholt Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Price,Heneveld, Huizenga & Cooper 5 7] ABSTRACT A bowl type earth movingvehicle auger apparatus employing vertical augers above the earth inletopening and scraper, the augers having free lower ends and having theupper ends specially mounted in a floating fashion to accommodate entryof large objects such as rocks. The auger lower end is laterallycontrollably shiftable in response to lateral stresses as a result of aspecial bearing assembly on the auger upper end shaft, and the auger isvertically shiftable in response to vertical stress as a result of themounting arrangement of the auger framework to the bowl assembly. Also,the auger is vertically shiftable in cooperation with opening of theapron, as a result of the auger framework being specially cooperablewith the apron elevating mechanism, to assure free discharge flow fromthe bowl without auger interference.

18 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTEDHAY 28 19M SHEET Q 0F 4 BACKGROUNDOF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to earth moving vehicles, andmore particularly to a bowl type earth moving vehicle employing aloading auger assembly.

This invention constitutes an improvement of the basic apparatus in myU.S. Pat. No. 3,533,173 entitled Earth Mover With Powered AugerCombination, issued Oct. 13, 1970.

The apparatus in my above identified patent proved to be effective inthe manner there set forth. The unit is capable of self loading and isefficient. Further, debris and smaller rocks can be accommodatedcomparable to conventional assist-filled earth movers.

Periodically, however, operating conditions were experienced whereinbreakage and/or damage of the auger assembly occurred. It was discoveredthat this usually occurred wherein an obstacle of substantial size,particularly a large rock, was encountered. It was therefore desirableto be able to accommodate terrain containing such large obstacles,whether known or not, without concern over damage to the auger assembly.Yet the unit had to be fully effective and efficient under regularoperating conditions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of this invention is to provide anearth moving vehicle and auger assembly capable of accommodating varioustypes of operating conditions, including large rocks, frozen earthclumps, and large chunks ofdebris, and capable of continued rapidefficient loading and unloading, without assistance, whether in abrasivesand, stiffclay, rocky ground, or ground containing a heavy frost layer.The invention provides an auger assembly which has a controlled floatingarrangement relative to the earth mover. The .auger assembly can readilybe attached to new or used earth movers, and can be quickly removed ifdesired. The assembly is capable of substantial abuse without damage orbreakdown.

The novel auger assembly is attachable by simple pivot connections tothe earth mover bowl, is elevated during bowl discharge to preventinterference during discharge, with elevation of the bowl apron and bythe arms of the bowl apron, yet without being mounted on theapron or itsarms.

The auger assembly is capable of shifting vertically under verticalstress as by an entering rock to temporarily move out of the rock path,while still operating, and of returning to its fully lowered conditionafter passage of the rock or other obstacle.

The lower free ends of the individual augers are capable of temporarylateral shift in response to lateral stress as by an entering rock orthe like, while still operating, and returning to the original position.The vertical and lateral shifting can occur simultaneously if necessary,to provide excellent flexibility to the system.

These and many other objects and features, as well as structural detailswill be readily apparent upon studying the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view ofan earth mover employing the invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the opposite side toward thefront end portion, of the earth mover in FIG. 1, without the tractor;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary enlarged perspective view of the main bodyportion of the earth mover, showing the front apron elevated and theauger assembly elevated;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view looking down upon thepower drive train for the auger asssembly of the apparatus;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the auger elements, aportion of the drive mechanism thereto, and the floating bearingarrangement supporting them;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective and further enlarged view of one ofthe auger bearing mounting arrangements;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary elevational sectional view of the bearingarrangement for an auger of the invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the frame assembly for the augers of theinvention; and

FIG. 9 is an elevational view of one type of power drive means for theaugers, as viewed in a rearward direction from the bowl unit.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring specifically to FIG.1, the apparatus there depicted comprises an articulated earth movingvehicle 10 employing a powered towing tractor l2 interconnected throughan articulated hitch 14 with the bowl type earth moving assembly 16.

Tractor 12 constitutes a conventional two wheel or four wheel tractor asdesired, employing any suitable type of engine, and conventional drivewheels 18. Hitch 14 is of conventional type, e.g., employing a forwardvertical pivot axis for controlled articulation between vehicles 16 and12. 4

. The tractor may also operate suitable electrical generating equipmentand/or hydraulic pumping equipment, the latter being useful foroperating fluid cylinders on the bowl assembly in a manner to bedescribed more specifically hereinafter. Alternatively a supplementalengine on the bowl assembly may be employed for producing electricaland/or hydraulic or pneumatic power as needed. The hydraulic connectionscan be made through suitable hoses 20 between the towing vehicle andthetowed vehicle if the tractor engine is employed for hydraulic power asin the form depicted.

The towed bowl assembly may assume a variety of somewhat differentphysical forms of the type presently marketed. Basically, this type ofunit employs, between the hitch subassembly 14 on the front end andwheels and axle subassembly 24 on the rear end, a large bowl 26 whichpreferably and normally has an openablecloseable apron subassembly 28 onthe front portion thereof behind the hitch. When this apron assembly iselevated, the front end of the bowl is opened controlled amounts, as isknown. During filling of the bowl, the apron is usually only partiallyopened to allow dirt entry without spillage back out. During emptyingi.e., discharge of the contents from the bowl, the apron is fullyelevated to fully open the front end of the bowl.

Also, when the bowl is to be filled, first the apron is partiallyelevated as noted, and then the bowl front end is lowered to cause ascraper blade 17 of conventional type immediately at the rear edge ofthe opening to be lowered into engagement with the earth. Thesefunctions will be more specifically described hereinafter.

A pair of fluid cylinders 32 mounted on opposite sides of the bowlfunction to elevate the apron controlled amounts. A pair of fluidcylinders 34 mounted forwardly of the apron serve to lower the entirefront end of the bowl for engaging the scraper 17 with the earth, asdepicted in phantom lines in FIG. 1, or elevating the entire front endof the bowl to hoist the scraper blade out of engagement with the earth.Cylinders 34 each have one end pivotally attached to the hitchsubassembly 14, with the piston rods thereof being pivotally attached tothe forward end of a pair of arms 36 fixedly attached to' the oppositeexterior sides of the bowl 15. Extension of cylinders 34 thus lowers thebowl and scraper blade, while contraction thereof hoists the same.

To prevent cylinders 34 from being subjected to the pulling tensionbetween the tractor and earth moving bowl, a pair of swinging towingarms 40 are attached to opposite sides of the bowl by pivotalconnections 42 at their rear ends, and are interconnected to hitchsubassembly 14 through a cross piece 44 extending between the upperforward ends of these arms 40. Extension and contraction of cylinder 34causes these arms to swing through anarc in conventional fashion.

The piston rods of cylinders 32 are connected to legs 50 on oppositesides of the bowl. The opposite end of each of these'legs is affixed toan elongated arm 54 intermediate its ends. The rear end of each arm 54is pivotally ataached at 52 to plate 53 at the side of the bowl whilethe forward end portion is secured to the upper edge of apron 28.Extension of cylinders 32 therefore causes arms 54 to swing in avertical arc upwardly about pivots 52 to elevate the apron. The apronbasically is a frontal panel 27 (usually curved) (FIG. I) joined to apair of partial side panels 29 (FIG. 3). Partial elevation of the apronexposes the scraper blade. Full elevation of the apron fully opens thefront end of the bowl to allow emptying thereof by forward movement of aconventional, forwardly-rearwardly sliding rear vertical panel 89 (FIG.3). Complete elevation of the apron also hoists the auger assembly in amanner to be described hereinafter.

The auger assembly 60 includes a framework 62 upon which the augers aremounted. The augers are driven by a suitable power supply throughmechanical,

electrical, hydraulic, or pneumatic connections. This power supply ispreferably a supplemental engine such as engine 64 shown mounted in thisinstance at the rear of the bowl. Conceivably the main tractor enginecould be employed, but this is normally not advisable. The driveconnections between the engine and the augers are arranged to havesufficient flexibility to accommodate hoisting action of the augerassembly.

The auger assembly includes at least'one, and preferably a plurality ofindividual, vertically oriented augers 70, here shown to be two innumber..These are spaced laterally of each other relative to thedirection of movement of the vehicle, each including a shaft 72 and ahelical blade 74 therearound terminating at a free unattached lower endpositioned close to and above the scraper blade and adjacent dirt inlet.The augers are mounted in the transverse portion of framework 62. Thistransverse portion comprises a pair of vertically spaced channel members76 and extending transversely of the vehicle between and secured attheir ends to two spaced parallel upright plate type pillars 78 adjacent opposite sides of the bowl. Uprights 78 have their lower portionsfixedly attached to a pair of elongated forwardly-rearwardly extendingpivot arms or beams 80. These are unattached to the bowl itself but arealigned with the bowl side walls to be capable of resting on the upperedges thereof. They are pivotally attached by pins 82 through the rearend of .the arms to the upper ends of a pair of mounting brackets 84fixedly attached as by welding to the rear frame of the bowl vehicle.This entire framework and the augers can be pivoted i.e., swing upwardlythrough an are about the rear pivot axis formed by coaxial pins 82.

Mounting of the auger shafts to cross members 76 and 100 is done in aspecial fashion as depicted specifically in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7.Particularly, the auger shaft extends through an enlarged opening 76 incross member 76, and has aroundit, and specifically around an enlargedcollar 72 with an annular peripheral flange 72" thereon, a resilientpolymeric support 90. This support is of deformable resilient materialsuch as natural or artificial'rubber or the like, and is secured on topof cross member 76 in sandwich fashion by an upper plate 92, with bolts94 extending through cross member 76, rubber mount 90 and plate 92.Plate 92 also has an enlarged opening 92 to prevent shaft contacttherewith with swinging shaft deflection to be described. The upper endof each auger shaft 72 is connected into a conventional right angledrive gear housing 98. Between the gear housing and spaced above therubber bearing support is a second bearing support and a gear housingstabilizer. The upper bearing support may constitute another resilientsupport like the one below it, ormay, as in the version depicted,constitute a spherical swivel bearing as depicted in FIG. 7. Theimportant feature is for the auger shaft to be able to pivot in swingingfashion with lateral deflection of the lower end of the auger underlaterally applied stresses in any direction within a 360 horizontalcircle, as by a rock entering the lower bowl opening. The sphericalmember 73 fits within the correspondingly shaped cavity of bearinghousing 104 mounted on member 100.

Gear housings 98 are restrained from undue rotation with the augers by apair of radially projecting restrainers 108 mounted to the underside ofthe respective gear housings and stabilized relative to the framework.This stabilization is achieved by a first rod 110 interconnected betweenone stabilizer and the framework 68 (FIG. 5) by having its bent endsextending through holes in these elements, and a se'condrod 1 l 1between the two stabilizers and having its bent ends extending throughholes therein.

The input drive to the gear housings, in the embodiment depicted,isthrough a pair of drive shafts 112, each of which has a universaljoint 114 adjacent the gear housings, and a second universal joint 116adjacent the enlarged pulleys 118 at the rear of the machine lhesepulleys are keyed to drive shafts 112 and are' in turn driven by drivebelts 120 (FIG. 4). These drive belts are driven from a pair of pulleys122 coaxially attached to the output shaft of a fluid coupling 124driven by the output shaft of internal combustion engine 64 at the rearof the vehicle. This engine can be mounted elsewhere if desired. Also,instead of the illustrated mechanical drive connection from power motormeans 64 to the augers, a hydraulic drive arrangement can be used. Inthat case fluid coupling 124 would be replaced by a hydraulic pump,fluid connecting lines would extend from the pump to hydraulic motorsconnected to the upper end of the auger shafts. Or compressed air couldbe used instead of hydraulic fluid. Alternatively, electrical drivemeans could be used with an electrical generator driven by the powermotor means, with electrical lines connecting it to electrical motorsdriving the augers.

Pulleys 118 are each mounted on a pair of straddling bearings 130, thesebearings being in turnsupported on a pair of transverse beams 132 and134 in front of and behind the pulleys. Beam 132 is mounted on a pair ofuprights 136 having their lower ends secured to the framework 138 at therear of the earth mover (FIG. 4). Beam 134 is mounted on a like pair ofuprights 140 having their lower ends also secured to framework 138.These pulleys, belts, hydraulic coupler and engine are of conventionalconstruction.

The augers and the auger framework are biased to a lowered position bygravity because of the weight of this assembly. The augers andframework, however, can be elevated against this bias by lifting forces.These lifting forces are basically of two types. The first type is alifting force created by raising of the apron assembly.'Specifically, apair of abutting type cams 150 are (FIG. 2 and FIG. 3) mounted to theforward ends of the apron supporting elevating arms 54 to be in verticalalignment with a pair of upwardly forwardly sloping cam followersurfaces 81 on the forward lower edges of members 80. Hence, elevationof the apron can cause simultaneous elevation of the auger assembly.Preferably, some lost motion is purposely provided between the elevationof these two components such that the initial elevation of the apron tocreate a dirt entry opening in the bowl assembly causes little, if any,elevation of the auger assembly. Thus, the apron can be opened a smallamount to expose the scraper blade during loading of the bowl, withoutthe augers being moved away significantly from the opening through whichthe dirtis passing. The augers are therefore immediately available toimmediately elevate the dirt away from the opening and prevent thecreation of undue back pressures on the dirt entering. However, when theapron is fully opened as during discharge of the bowl, the entire augerframework is elevated to thereby also elevate the augers themselves andmove their lower ends upwardly and forwardly (FIG. 3) out of the way ofthe discharging dirt. This prevents them from unduly hindering dirtdischarge. The drive mechanism to the augers accommodates this elevationbecause of the universal joints in the drive shafts. This is one way inwhich the auger assembly can be elevated.

The other way in which the auger assembly can be elevated occurs when aparticularly large obstacle such as a large rock is encountered duringthe loading operation. In this instance, the upward force of the rock onthe auger or augers causes the auger assembly to swing upwardly aroundpivot pins 82 until the rock is shifted 5 wise encounter one of theaugers and apply a lateral thrust in any direction within the 360degrees of a plane normal to the auger axis, the lower free end of theauger can deflect away from this applied force, against the bias of theresilient rubber mounting 90, to accoml0 modate passage of the obstacle.As soon as the obstacle passes the auger, the inherent bias of theresilient mounting member 90 returns the auger to its initial position.As noted, this lateral deflection can occur simultaneously withelevation of the auger. Vertical alignment of the auger assembly isnormally maintained rel- 6 into the earth mover out of the range of theaugers.

Thereupon, the weight of the auger assembly causes it to return to itsprimary lowered position.

ative to the sides of the bowl assembly, even during elevation of theaugers because of a rock being encountered or the like, by having thelower end portions of the uprights 78 extend below the upper edges ofthe bowl side walls, and preferably flared laterally outwardly to act asvertical guides.

Although the operation of the novel apparatus is apparent from theprevious detailed description, a brief description of the sequence willbe set forth for certain clarity. Specifically, in use of earth movingvehicle 10 with tractor l2, interconnected in articulated fashion byhitch 14 to bowl type earth scraper l6, assuming that the bowl is empty,and the tractor engine and auxiliary engine are operating, hydrauliccylinders 32 are activated a small amount to elevate the apronsufficiently to create an earth receiving opening ahead of scraper blade17. Then, hydraulic cylinders 34 are activated to drive the forward endof the bowl and scraper blade down into engagement with the earth. Withinter nal combustion engine 64 driving the augers through the drivetrain assembly, when the tractor moves forwardly to cause earth to passover thescraper blade, the lower ends of the augers immediately hoistthe earth away from the opening to allow the structure to fill. Repeatedexperimental operations show that the entire bowl of medium capacity canbe readily filled within a matter of 30 to 50 seconds. The apparatuswill accommodate various types of earth including abrasive sand or deadearth, rocks, ground with a heavy frost layer, or clay. The vehicle isself-loading, requiring no dozer or other equipment to assist it. If arock of substantial size or other obstacle is encountered, the rapidlyrotating augers can deflect laterally and/or vertically to enable therock to pass without damaging the auger units themselves or theframework upon which they are suspended. During normal filling, theauger assembly frequently bounces and shifts repeatedly, because of itsfloating type arrangement. It is believed that this assists in effectivebreaking up and loading of all types of dirt, as well as in handlingobstacles. In fact, the dirt appears to actually boil up" into the bowl.

When the bowl is full and the load is to be transferred to anotherlocation, the apron is normally closed by retracting cylinders 32 toprevent spillage. When the location is reached at which the load is tobe discharged, cylinders 32 are fully extended to elevate the apron toits full open condition, thereby opening the front of the bowl andsimultaneously hoisting the auger subassem-- bly until the augers arebasically out of the path of the earth being discharged. The earth isthen discharged as by a forwardly moving power driven plate 89 (FIG. 3),or other equivalent unloading means. After discharge,

plate 89 is withdrawn rearwardly to its initial position, and the apronassembly is lowered, thereby lowering the auger assembly simultaneously.The unit is then ready to receive its next load.

It is conceivable that those knowledgeable in this art will readilyvisualize that the auger assembly can be attached to various models ofbowl type earth moving equipment presently available on the market. Infact, representatives of large companies manufacturing bowl type unitspresently, upon viewing the experimental operation of the apparatus haveindicated that the unit could be readily attached to their new or usedequipmerit and could be driven hydraulically and/or electrically and/orby other alternative equivalent mechanical means to that depictedherein. The depicted illustrative mechanical arrangement was preferredby the individual inventor for ease of altering operating parametersduring experimentation. The alternative drive arrangements might bepreferred for other reasons such as cost, use of components common toearth moving equipment manufacturers, and the like. The structure hasparticular advantages to smaller operators who cannot afford expensivesupplemental equipment to assist in the loading operations. Also, in theevent of damage to the auger assembly, or other reason for removalthereof, this can be quickly and easily done by pulling pivot pins 82,disconnecting the drive connections to the augers, and hoisting it out.Obviously use of hydraulic drive with standard disconnect couplings onthe market would be simple also. Hence, these modifications which couldbe readily made to the equipment by those in the artare clearly withinthe scope of the invention which is intended tobe limited only by thescope of the appended claims and the reasonable equivalents theretorather than to the specific embodiment depictedv herein asrepresentative of the inventlon.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimedare defined as follows:

1. An earth moving vehicle comprising: in combination with a bowlassembly having an underside earth inlet opening anda scraper bladeadjacent said inlet; an auger assembly having at least one-generallyvertically arranged auger in said bowl assembly having a lower free endgenerally adjacent said opening and power motor means operably connectedto said auger to rotate it; the improvement comprising: a frameworksupporting the upper end portion of said auger, said upper end portionincluding an auger shaft, and said framework including bearing supportmeans around said auger shaft, said bearing support means includinglaterally shiftable portions to allow said auger lower end to, laterallyshift temporarily in response to side thrust, said framework beingmounted to said bowl assembly with a connection allowing said frameworkand said auger assembly to be vertically movable-relative,to said bowlassembly, enabling said auger to be vertically shiftable in response tolifting thrust for passage of obstacles such as rocks enteringsaid bowlassembly.

2. The combination in claim 1 wherein said framework is pivotallymounted to said bowl assembly on a radius at a substantial angle to theaxis of said auger to accommodate said vertical movement.

3. The combination in claim 1 wherein said frame- I work is pivotallymounted to said bowl assembly toward the rear thereof relative to saidopening.

4. The combination in claim 3 wherein said framework includes a pair ofarm assemblies adjacent opposite sides of said bowl assembly andextending toward the rear of said bowl assembly for pivotal mountingthereto.

5. The combination in claim 1 wherein said bowl assembly includes anapron, and apron elevating means to lift the apron and open the bowlassembly for contents discharge, and said apron elevating means andauger framework being operably coupled to vertically move said frameworkand auger with lifting of said apron for contents discharge from saidbowl assembly.

6. The combination in cliam I wherein said bearing support meansincludes resilient bearing means positioned to allow limited lateralshift of the auger.

7. The combination in claim I wherein said bearing support meansincludes two vertically spaced support means for said auger shaft, theupper one having a swivel action allowing the auger to swing thereaboutand the lower one having resilient restraining means surrounding theauger shaft to limit lateral swinging movement of the auger shaft whileapplying a return bias thereto.

8. The combination in claim 6 wherein said resilient bearing meansco'mprises a resilient rubbery cushion.

9. An earth moving vehicle comprising: in combination with a bowlassembly having an underside earth inlet opening and a scraper bladeadjacent said inlet; an auger assembly having at least one generallyvertically arranged auger in said bowl assembly. having a lower free endgenerally adjacent said opening and power motor means operably connectedto saidauger to rotate it; the improvement comprising: aframework'supporting the upper end portion of said auger, said upper endportion including an auger shaft, and saidframework including bearingsupport meansfaround said auger shaft, said bearing support meansincluding laterally shiftable portions, and means limiting the lateralshifting thereof to a controlled amount,.to allow said auger lower endto temporarily laterally shift in response to side thrust, allowingpassage of obstacles such as rocks entering said bowl assembly.

10. The combination of claim 9 wherein saidbearing support meansincludes a swivel bearing to allow lateralswinging shift of said augerlower end, and lateral shiftv limiting means.

'11. The combination in claim 9 wherein said bearing support meansincludes two verticallyspaced bearing means around said auger shaft, theupper one having a swivel action to allow the auger therebelow'to swingrelative thereto, and the lower'one being a resilient cushion to limitlateral shaft movement while also applying a return bias thereto.

12. An earth moving vehicle comprisingzin combination with a bowlassembly having an underside earth inlet opening and a scraper bladeadjacent said inlet, an

auger assembly having at least one generally vertically arranged augerin said bowl assembly having a lower free end generally adjacent saidopening and power motor means operably connected to said auger to rotateit; the improvement comprising: a framework supporting the upper endportion of said auger, said upper end portion including anauger shaft,said framework including bearing support means around said auger shaft,saidframework being mountedto said bowl as-- sembly with a connectionallowing said framework and said auger assembly to be vertically movablerelative to said bowl assembly, enabling said auger to be verticallyshiftable in response to lifting thrust for passage of obstacles such asrocks entering said bowl assembly.

13. The combination ofclaim 12 wherein said framework is pivotallymounted to said bowl assembly on a radius at a substantial angle to theaxis of said auger to accommodate said vertical movement.

14. The combination in claim 12 wherein said framework includes a pairof arm assemblies extending toward the rear of said bowl assembly alongopposite sides thereof and pivotally mounted thereto.

15. The combination of claim 12 wherein said bowl assembly includes anapron, and apron elevating means to lift the apron and open the bowlassembly for discharge, and said apron elevating means and augerframework being operably coupled to vertically shift said framework andauger with lifting of said apron to open the bowl assembly fordischarge.

16. An auger attachment assembly for an earth moving vehicle having abowl assembly with an underside earth inlet opening and adjacent scraperblade comprising:

a framework having a pair of spaced arm assemblies with pivotconnections for pivotal attachment to opposite sides of a bowl assembly;at least one vertical auger having an upper end shaft mounted on saidframework; said framework including bearing support means around saidauger shaft, said bearing support means including shiftable portions andbiasing means opposing shifting thereof, allowing limited lateral shiftof the lower end of said auger in response to side thrust.

17. The auger attachment assembly in claim 16 wherein said bearingsupport means includes a swivel bearing to allow lateral shift of saidauger lower end,

and including lateral shift limiting means.

18. The combination in claim 16 wherein said bearing support meansincludes two vertically spaced hearing means around said auger shaft,the upper one having a swivel action to allow the auger therebelow toswing relative thereto, and the lower one being resilient to allow onlylimited lateral shaft movement while applying a return bias thereto.

1. An earth moving vehicle comprIsing: in combination with a bowlassembly having an underside earth inlet opening and a scraper bladeadjacent said inlet; an auger assembly having at least one generallyvertically arranged auger in said bowl assembly having a lower free endgenerally adjacent said opening and power motor means operably connectedto said auger to rotate it; the improvement comprising: a frameworksupporting the upper end portion of said auger, said upper end portionincluding an auger shaft, and said framework including bearing supportmeans around said auger shaft, said bearing support means includinglaterally shiftable portions to allow said auger lower end to laterallyshift temporarily in response to side thrust, said framework beingmounted to said bowl assembly with a connection allowing said frameworkand said auger assembly to be vertically movable relative to said bowlassembly, enabling said auger to be vertically shiftable in response tolifting thrust for passage of obstacles such as rocks entering said bowlassembly.
 2. The combination in claim 1 wherein said framework ispivotally mounted to said bowl assembly on a radius at a substantialangle to the axis of said auger to accommodate said vertical movement.3. The combination in claim 1 wherein said framework is pivotallymounted to said bowl assembly toward the rear thereof relative to saidopening.
 4. The combination in claim 3 wherein said framework includes apair of arm assemblies adjacent opposite sides of said bowl assembly andextending toward the rear of said bowl assembly for pivotal mountingthereto.
 5. The combination in claim 1 wherein said bowl assemblyincludes an apron, and apron elevating means to lift the apron and openthe bowl assembly for contents discharge, and said apron elevating meansand auger framework being operably coupled to vertically move saidframework and auger with lifting of said apron for contents dischargefrom said bowl assembly.
 6. The combination in cliam 1 wherein saidbearing support means includes resilient bearing means positioned toallow limited lateral shift of the auger.
 7. The combination in claim 1wherein said bearing support means includes two vertically spacedsupport means for said auger shaft, the upper one having a swivel actionallowing the auger to swing thereabout and the lower one havingresilient restraining means surrounding the auger shaft to limit lateralswinging movement of the auger shaft while applying a return biasthereto.
 8. The combination in claim 6 wherein said resilient bearingmeans comprises a resilient rubbery cushion.
 9. An earth moving vehiclecomprising: in combination with a bowl assembly having an undersideearth inlet opening and a scraper blade adjacent said inlet; an augerassembly having at least one generally vertically arranged auger in saidbowl assembly having a lower free end generally adjacent said openingand power motor means operably connected to said auger to rotate it; theimprovement comprising: a framework supporting the upper end portion ofsaid auger, said upper end portion including an auger shaft, and saidframework including bearing support means around said auger shaft, saidbearing support means including laterally shiftable portions, and meanslimiting the lateral shifting thereof to a controlled amount, to allowsaid auger lower end to temporarily laterally shift in response to sidethrust, allowing passage of obstacles such as rocks entering said bowlassembly.
 10. The combination of claim 9 wherein said bearing supportmeans includes a swivel bearing to allow lateral swinging shift of saidauger lower end, and lateral shift limiting means.
 11. The combinationin claim 9 wherein said bearing support means includes two verticallyspaced bearing means around said auger shaft, the upper one having aswivel action to allow the auger therebelow to swing relative thereto,and the lower one being a resilient cushion to limit lateral shaftmovement while also applying a return bias therEto.
 12. An earth movingvehicle comprising: in combination with a bowl assembly having anunderside earth inlet opening and a scraper blade adjacent said inlet;an auger assembly having at least one generally vertically arrangedauger in said bowl assembly having a lower free end generally adjacentsaid opening and power motor means operably connected to said auger torotate it; the improvement comprising: a framework supporting the upperend portion of said auger, said upper end portion including an augershaft, said framework including bearing support means around said augershaft, said framework being mounted to said bowl assembly with aconnection allowing said framework and said auger assembly to bevertically movable relative to said bowl assembly, enabling said augerto be vertically shiftable in response to lifting thrust for passage ofobstacles such as rocks entering said bowl assembly.
 13. The combinationof claim 12 wherein said framework is pivotally mounted to said bowlassembly on a radius at a substantial angle to the axis of said auger toaccommodate said vertical movement.
 14. The combination in claim 12wherein said framework includes a pair of arm assemblies extendingtoward the rear of said bowl assembly along opposite sides thereof andpivotally mounted thereto.
 15. The combination of claim 12 wherein saidbowl assembly includes an apron, and apron elevating means to lift theapron and open the bowl assembly for discharge, and said apron elevatingmeans and auger framework being operably coupled to vertically shiftsaid framework and auger with lifting of said apron to open the bowlassembly for discharge.
 16. An auger attachment assembly for an earthmoving vehicle having a bowl assembly with an underside earth inletopening and adjacent scraper blade comprising: a framework having a pairof spaced arm assemblies with pivot connections for pivotal attachmentto opposite sides of a bowl assembly; at least one vertical auger havingan upper end shaft mounted on said framework; said framework includingbearing support means around said auger shaft, said bearing supportmeans including shiftable portions and biasing means opposing shiftingthereof, allowing limited lateral shift of the lower end of said augerin response to side thrust.
 17. The auger attachment assembly in claim16 wherein said bearing support means includes a swivel bearing to allowlateral shift of said auger lower end, and including lateral shiftlimiting means.
 18. The combination in claim 16 wherein said bearingsupport means includes two vertically spaced bearing means around saidauger shaft, the upper one having a swivel action to allow the augertherebelow to swing relative thereto, and the lower one being resilientto allow only limited lateral shaft movement while applying a returnbias thereto.